The ban applies to the chemicals BB-22 and 5F-AKB48, and will
come into effect on May 9.

It comes after weeks of media pressure, including ONE News
stories which highlighted serious health concerns with the K2
product, putting some users in hospital and others is psychiatric
wards.

"The Health Ministry considers that these particular substances
pose a risk at least comparable to other already banned synthetic
cannabis substances, therefore I have made the decision that it
needs to be banned," Dunne said.

"And I encourage police enforcement of these bans at every
opportunity, and I also encourage community pressure on dairies and
other outlets that sell them.

"We need to apply pressure from all ends on a dirty industry
until we can get our world-leading legislation in place."

Today's ban brings the total number of substances banned under
temporary notices to 35, with 50 products containing those
substances now off the shelves.

From next Thursday, it will be illegal to import, manufacture,
sell or supply the substances, with penalties of up to eight years
imprisonment.

Sergent Bevan Seal, who has been campaigning for dairies to stop
selling it voluntarily, says the ban is "a big step in the right
direction".

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"It will be illegal to have it in the dairies, to import it, to
sell it, to use it ... so we've got powers now to start prosecuting
people if they have it," he said.

Medical experts are backing the ban as well, saying it will
reduce hospital admissions.

"We notice once more analogues are banned, there's a drop in the
calls to the centre and that seems to be reflected in other parts
of society," toxicologist Dr Leo Schep said.

Dunne said the ban was "another blow" to the industry, but said
he was "counting the weeks" until August when the Psychoactive
Substances Bill is expected to pass into law.

Submissions on the legislation close tomorrow, and the Health
Select Committee is due to report the Bill back to Parliament in
mid-June.

"What this ban will do in the meantime is force more of the K2
product off the shelves and that is the best outcome we can have at
this point with a product that is clearly bad for people," he
said.

Dunne also hit out at the industry and outlets which sell such
products as having "not integrity whatsoever".

"There is no goodwill and there is no decency in this industry,
and that is why we are legislating. They prove day-in and day-out
that they cannot be trusted," he added.